Singapore has hit the newsrooms again with a step towards a successful installation of renewable energy resources in the country. In the past, there has been a lot of speculations on this matter with the government announcing plans to skyrocket such options. The government, through the ministry of Environment and Water Resources, has kept the sustainable business entity formation options open in an attempt to lure green energy investors in the country. Today this seems to have yield results.

A step towards success

The country has successfully completed the initial stages of building its renewable energy pilot models which will be a key indicator of success. The ministry is optimistic that this will succeed and some day the know-how will be exported.

The project involves ten photovoltaic (PV) floating solar panels installed in western Tengah Reservoir makes it one of the largest pilot test of its nature. According to Economics Development Board, this major step aims at testing different floating solar panels made by various manufacturers across the globe.

The minister for Environment and Water Resources, Mr. Masagos Zulkifli has said; ''This pilot project is first of its kind worldwide because of the sheer variety of flotation systems and PV modules tested, and the rigor involved in studying the environmental impact of floating PV systems.''

''If this pilot successfully establishes the economic viability and environmental sustainability of floating solar PV systems, Singapore will explore the large-scale deployment of these systems,'' he added.

Benefits of floating solar panels

Singapore decided to try on the floating solar panels in response to the land constraints of 2011. According to the National water agency PUB, this project was due in 2013 but got delayed by poor inter-government coordination.

According to research released by various manufacturing companies, the panels will reduce the loss of water from the reservoir due to evaporation. This can reduce by up to 50 percent which is a big plus for Singapore.

The reports added that the PV floating systems would produce more electricity as the water acts as a coolant. When the panels are cool, they absorb more UV light at any given time and convert it into electricity.

What is ahead for the future?

The government promises that by next year, they will have taken two best-performing companies and scale their electricity production to one megawatt each.

Mr. Magaso confirmed that Singapore's Renewable Energy Integration Demonstrator Singapore (Reids) will be mandated to build three other microgrids at Pulau Semakau in addition to the one already there.

Amid this creation of clean energy, some companies have shown interest to embrace the concept. One such a company is a resort hotel in Indonesia, and their microgrid will be built by Eigine and Schneider Electric using Reids’ concept.

"The Reids platform will, therefore, pave the way for similar solutions to be developed and exported to serve the fast-growing microgrids market in South-east Asia and beyond,'' Mr. Masago said.

He further added that; "Such clean-energy test beds in Singapore underscore the importance of innovation and close partnership between the government and industry in developing environmental sustainability. They allow Singapore to develop a leadership role in renewable energy development in the region."